Method of handling trawl gear



an. 2, 19 BLOUNT 3,360,881

METHOD OF HANDLING TRAWL GEAR Filed'May 17, 1965 INVENTOR.

LUTHER H. BLOUNT ATTORNEYS United States Patent ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The method of hauling trawl nets which comprises hauling in one net wit-h its otter boards and reeling the hauled-in net and then launching a second net on the otter boards used for the first net allowing for repairs of one net while the trawling may still continue.

This invention relates to trawling and particularly to the method of handling the trawl gear used in such operation. Trawlers usually handle their trawl gear, consisting of a single net, over one side of the vessel, and when it is necessary to repair such trawl net, there is a downtime in the trawling operation during the time that it is necessary to repair such net. In some cases a spare net might be utilized by substituting the spare net in place of the one which needs to be repaired. To substitute such a net, however, is a time consuming operation as much of the gear must be manipulated in order to do so.

The present invention provides a means of hauling in one net and immediately launching another net with a minimum of downtime and no downtime necessary while one net is being repaired or no elaborate change of equipment for doing so. Further the operation is through a common opening in the stern of the vessel through which each of the nets are either pulled in or launched.

An object of the invention is to provide an arrangement so that either one of two nets may be selectively put over board or hauled in and immediately that one is hauled in the other may be put overboard.

Another object of the invention is to provide a passageway for either of the nets which are equally convenient for either net in its being launched or hauled in.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel means of connecting the leads from the ground cables to the otter boards or doors and to the net winches for reeling the nets.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view largely schematic illustrating certain parts of the rig comprising this invention;

FIG. 2 is a similar view showing a further step in the operation of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a similar view of a still further progressive step in the operation of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a top plan view illustrating schematically how the leads to the otter board are connected.

With reference to the drawings 10 designates generally the after portion of a vessel equipped for handling trawl gear and nets. The vessel is provided with starboard bulwarks 11 and port bulwarks 12 which extend around the stern of the vessel as at 14, While there is an opening left at 15 between the terminal portions of the stern bulwarks which may or may not be equipped with a ramp as at 16. Sheaves 17 are provided at the ends of the bulwarks 14 so that cables may more easily be drawn around these points in the operation of the hauling in of the nets.

A pair of cable winches 20 and 21 are suitably driven by any mechanical means but not shown in this drawing for hauling in the cables 22 and 23 which lead about sheaves 24 and 25 and 26 and 27 supported on the gantrys 2-8 and 29 and then out to the otter boards 30 and 31, sometimes called doors, where they are connected to chains 32 and 33 leading from the bridles 34 and 3-5 on the inner side of the otter boards. On the outerside of the port otter boards there is a bridle 40 (FIG. 4) and a similar bridle on the starboard door from which there extends the ground, leads 42, 53 detachably connected as at 44, 45 to the eyes 46, 47 in the ground cables 48, 49. Pennants 50, 51 extend from the eyes 46, 47 and are detachably connected to the eyes 52, 53 on the otter boards 30, 31. These pennants are of such a length that they will remain slack when there is a tension on the cables 22, 23 with the ground leads 42, 43 from the otter boards connected and tensioned. The ground cables 48 leads to one end of the net 60 while the other ground cable 49 leads to the other end of the net 61.

Two net winches 62 and 63 are provided, one on the port side and one on the starboard side of the deck of the vessel 10, and are located well inboard from the opening 15 in the stern. Each one of these winches is equipped with ground leads, there being one ground lead 64 from one side of the winch and another ground lead 65 from the other side of the winch. These winches are also mechanically driven by mechanism not shown and may also be equipped with brakes for manual operation. There will be a net for each winch, and as shown in FIG. 1, the net is reeled on the starboard net winch 63 While the port net winch 62 is empty and with the ground leads 64 and 65 extending therefrom in a position for hauling in the net which is overboard and in operation.

In order to haul in the overboard net, the cable winches 20 and 21 are rotated to pull in the cables 22 and 23 until the otter boards 30 and 31 are in a position close enough to the gantrys 28 and 29 to be readily accessible at which time the cable winches 20 and 21 are stopped and the pennants 50 and 51 are disconnected from the eyes 52 and 53 on the otter boards and are connected into the eyes 66 and 67 on the net winch ground leads 64 and 65. Then the net winches are operated to haul in and tension the lines 64, 50 and 65, 51 as shown in FIG. 2 so as to allow slack to occur in the otter board ground leads 42 and 43 and then when the eyes 46 and 47 are close enough to the vessel so as to make them accessible, the ground leads 52 and 53 are detached from the eyes 46 and 47 and placed on hooks 68 and 69 on the vessel, thus completely disconnecting the otter boards from the net ends 60 and 61. Now the net as hauled in will collapse and may be reeled upon the net winches or the net winch 62 in the position substantially as shown in FIG. 3.

As the net on Winch 62 is approaching completion of its being reeled upon the net winch 62, the other net on the starboard net winch 63 may be launched and as the net winch ground leads such as 64 and 65 are exposed, the pennants 50 and 51 attached to the eyes such as 66 and 67 of the ground leads on the starboard winch 63 when a little further out may have the otter board ground leads attached to the eyes 46 and 47 with the net let out until strain is taken upon these ground leads 42 and 43, whereupon the pennants 50 and 51 then become slack and are attached to the otter boards in the eyes 52 and 53 and the net then let out by the unreeling of the cable drums or winches 20 and 21.

By this method of operation as soon as one net is hauled in for either repairs or for any other purpose, the other net may be immediately let out and be put into operation, all through a common opening such as 15 whic-his equally accessible to each of the nets being handled.

I claim:

'1. ,In a trawl vessel having a bulwark opening in the stern, and trawl gear including a pair of spaced cable winches, a pair of spaced net winches, each of said net winches having a pair of ground leads and a net for each net winch with one net wound on one winch and one net overboard leaving its winch empty and With each net having a pair of ground cables, also such vessel having a pair of otter boards for alternative use with each net and operably connected to an overboard net, each otter board being equipped with a cable with the cable of one otter board operably connected to one cable winch and the cable of the other otter board operably connected to the other cable winch, each otter board also being provided with a ground lead to detachably connect to one of the overboard net ground cables and each ground cable being provided with a pennant to detachably attach to an otter board and of a length to be slack when the net is in operation, the method of handling the trawl gear comprising pulling the overboard net in with said cable Winches until the otter boards are accessible, detaching the pennants from the boards and attaching them to the net winch ground leads of the empty net winch, tensioning the pennants and ground cables of the overboard net to provide slack on the otter board ground leads, then disconnecting the otter board ground leads from the ground cables of the overboard net, then hauling in the pennants and net through the bulwark opening and reeling the net on the empty net Winch and then by reversing the steps, launching the net reeled 0n the other net winch through the bulwark opening.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,237,337 3/1966 Luketa 43-45 SAMUEL KOREN, Primary Examiner.

WARNER H. CAMP, Examiner. 

